Boys' Swimming Preview
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Swimmer to Watch
Eric Friedland, Sr., Walter Johnson
Last season, Friedland captured first place in the 200-yard individual medley (1 minute 51.94 seconds), the 100 breaststroke (56.40) and also was part of the Montgomery County 400 free relay champion en route to being named first-team All-Met. Friedland, who Coach Jamie Grimes said will be the leader on a team he says can challenge for the championship at Metros, will swim next year for Texas, the top-ranked college team in the nation.
Story Lines
1. How close will Metros be?
Last season Georgetown Prep dominated at Metros, scoring 460.5 points with the nearest competitor, Gonzaga, 150.5 points behind. This season things figure to be different. Prep lost the majority of its scoring swimmers from last season, and Gonzaga, DeMatha and several other schools have closed the gap, prompting Prep Coach Matt Mongelli to say he thinks this season's Metros could be decided by less than one point.
2. Robinson goes for six straight
The Rams have won the past five titles and despite graduating two-time All-Met Zach Holmes, return several top swimmers this year, led by second-team All-Met Derek Bui and Tim Wingert, both seniors. Rams Coach Rich Gordon indicated his team can make it six straight but will need to fight off strong pushes from Lake Braddock, Thomas Jefferson and Oakton.
3. How many records will fall?
From Eric Friedland at Walter Johnston, to Sean Stewart at Wootton, to Brady Fox at Georgetown Prep, several swimmers compete at the national swimming level and figure to break records. "Look at this area for swimming, this is a hotbed for very talented swimmers," Poolesville Coach Jon Leong said. "A lot of these records that have been around for a while are going to start falling."
Around the Area
Wootton returns All-Met Sean Stewart, who took first place in the 50-yard freestyle at Metros with an all-American time of 4 minutes 33.15 seconds. Stewart will swim at Maryland next year . The Patriots also return senior Stephen Sakaris, who will challenge in both the 100 and 200 freestyle. . . . Thomas Jefferson will be led by senior All-Met Jonathan Christensen, who was second in both the 200-meter individual medley and 100 breaststroke at the Virginia AAA state meet last season . . .
Georgetown Prep junior Brady Fox, who has an Olympics trials cut, or qualifying time, in the 100 and 200 backstroke, returns for the Little Hoyas and looks to lead Prep to another Metros title. . . . Whitman senior Mark Meyer also has an Olympic trials cut in the 200 butterfly and is favored to capture a Metros title for the second straight season . . .
Lake Braddock will struggle to make up for the loss of All-Met Andy Brake but have several freshmen including Jon McKenzie, who Coach Miriam Lynch says already has been a force. . . . Richard Montgomery freshman Tony Yang has stepped into the program and figures to make an immediate impact, Coach Aryn Wheeler said.
-- Paul Tenorio
